Wednesday, March 30, 2011

1st and 2nd Grade - Our trip to Crystal Pond Woods had us focused once again on Evaluative Thinking. Today, students solved problems using a Problem-Solving Matrix. We then revisited the Gold Rush by digging for "gold" ourselves in chocolate chip cookies. 3rd Grade - The word of the day was Osicitant. Osicitant means inattentive. Albert Einstein was the pilgrim of the day. Mr. Einstein's teachers thought him to be dull because he disliked school. He though learning should be about fantasy which meant he wanted to be looking for things we didn't know instead of memorizing facts. The warm-up activity of the day was 20 Questions. It took several attempts and hints, but these students finally determined the identity of the object. Their trip to Crystal Pond Woods had students solving problems using a Problem-Solving Matrix. The discovery lesson had us once again learning about the power of ice through a video on icebergs. 4th Grade - The word of the day was Wean. Wean means to withdraw from any type of habit and sounds like Teen. Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan were the pilgrims of the day. When an illness robbed Helen Keller of her vision and hearing at the age of two, Helen Keller felt trapped and became very angry. When Anne Sullivan entered her world, Miss Sullivan taught Helen to see, hear and speak using what available senses she had. Helen then wanted to explore everything. She became an author and activist in teaching people how to interact with the disabled. Stories with Holes was the warm-up activity. Students quickly solved two Stories with Holes problems. Continuing the idea of caring for the disabiled, our affective lesson had us watching Leo the Late Bloomer. We then discussed various disabilities and how people whether disabled or not should be treated. Our exploration lesson had us learning more about the circulatory system and discussing what could happen if there was a problem. Students spent the rest of the afternoon researching information to help them find clues to where their family may be stranded.